Awaiting Approval. Season 2, Episode 9 : William Barraclough - Curiosity

William Barraclough has built a creative career driven less by formal pathways and more by instinct, curiosity, and a willingness to try things before knowing where they might lead. Now Head of Product Design for International Wealth and Premier Banking at HSBC, his journey spans skateboarding, DJing, restaurant work, early digital agencies, global brands, and leadership roles earned without ever studying design formally.

In this episode, William joins Adam for a wide-ranging, thoughtful conversation about curiosity as a creative force. He reflects on growing up between cultures, finding creativity through motion, music, and experience design, and discovering design almost by accident through making flyers, editing video, and hacking together early digital work. From running a one-person studio straight out of the Job Centre to working at M&C Saatchi, Yahoo, and beyond, William’s career is a story of learning by doing and asking better questions along the way.

William talks openly about leadership, self-doubt, and resilience. He shares what it was like inheriting teams in moments of change, the importance of reading the room, and the leadership lesson he learned the hard way when context was missed. He and Adam explore imposter syndrome, pressure, nerves, and why those feelings often signal that something meaningful is at stake, not that you’re doing something wrong.

This episode is also about life beyond work. William reflects on community, mentoring, parenting, loss, and the importance of staying curious about the world around you. From food and travel to design education and career pathways, his perspective is grounded, generous, and deeply human.

This is a conversation about staying open. About curiosity as a mindset, not a skill. And about building a creative life by bringing people together, staying positive, and continuing to learn long after you think you should have it figured out.

In this episode, we cover:

* Finding design without formal education and learning through making

* How skateboarding, DJing, and motion shaped William’s creative instincts

* Early digital careers, hacking ideas, and building confidence through experience

* Leadership lessons learned from pressure, mistakes, and context

* Imposter syndrome, nerves, and why fear can be a useful signal

* The power of community, peer support, and creative networks

* Why curiosity matters more than certainty in a fast-changing industry

* Navigating career ladders, specialisms, and evolving design roles

* Mentoring, design education, and opening doors for the next generation* Parenting, presence, and life outside work

* Why optimism, kindness, and helping others still matter

#AwaitingApproval #CreativeLeadership #DesignLeadership #LeadershipPodcast #curiosity #aidesign

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This is Awaiting Approval. A podcast about the messy, human side of creative leadership.

Hosted by Adam Jennings - a creative leader with three decades of experience leading teams and projects for global brands including Microsoft, Salesforce, 20th Century Fox, Paramount Pictures, Ancestry, Dolby, BBC and many more - this show features honest, unscripted conversations with the leaders shaping design, storytelling, and innovation today.

These are the conversations you don’t hear in keynotes. The ones about imposter syndrome, trust, failure, confidence, and finding your voice as a leader.

Whether you’re just stepping into creative leadership or you’ve been at it for years, Awaiting Approval is your place to feel seen, challenged, and encouraged.

Awaiting Approval is a Cordial Fox production.Hosted by Adam Jennings.

Produced by Adam Jennings & Jasmin Egner.

© Cordial Fox Limited, 2026.

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